Key Takeaways:
- Although the increase in COVID-19 cases in Saskatchewan caused by the Omicron coronavirus variant appears to have leveled off or slowed, the health system remains in trouble.
- It also claims that due to COVID-19-infected workers’ unplanned absences and self-isolation, hospital staffing remains “critical.”
- The province hasn’t released any information about the COVID-19 deaths that have been reported since the weekend.
The increase in COVID-19 cases in Saskatchewan caused by the Omicron coronavirus variant may have leveled off or slowed, but the health system is still in trouble, doctors said at a town hall meeting on Thursday.
Hospitals are now caring for the highest count of people with COVID-19 seen during the pandemic, according to a presentation given at the Saskatchewan Health Authority town hall.
According to the physicians, hospitalizations are at an all-time high across all age groups, and intensive care unit occupancy remains high.
Also read: The weekly report from Saskatchewan reveals 5,401 new PCR-confirmed cases
According to the presentation, the non-ICU hospital system in Saskatchewan is at capacity, with cases at their highest levels to date.
It also claims that hospital staffing remains “critical” due to COVID-19-infected workers’ unplanned absences and self-isolation.
Dr. Carla Holinaty, a Saskatoon family physician, tells the town hall meeting confirmed what healthcare workers already knew: hospitalization rates are still high, and resources are stretched thin.
In a Friday interview with CBC, Holinaty stated, “I hope people can keep doing those easy, simple steps to protect each other, at least until after we’ve got a little bit more potential within our system to deal with people when they get sick.”
“We still want to ensure that anyone who requires hospital care can get there on time. We still want to be able to perform surgeries on a schedule that is convenient for patients.”
Up-to-date information is scarce.
Saskatchewan’s first weekly COVID-19 update, released Thursday after the province abandoned daily online updates, revealed a new high of 384 hospitalized patients.
That number corresponds to the caseload reported on February 3; the province announced it would stop providing daily COVID updates.
However, most of the weekly data released on Thursday pertains to the period from January 30 to February 5, implying that the information was already available to the public in the daily dashboard.
Since the weekend, the province hasn’t released any information about COVID-19 deaths that have been reported.
Source: Global News
